Upcoming female Hip-Hop artist, Gianni Raye, grew up listening to music such as Jill Scott, Jodeci, Musiq Soulchild, and Ms. Lauryn Hill. She stumbled upon Tupac’s All Eyez on Me album at a young age, and her love for Hip-Hop developed from that moment. When she was 12-years-old, she heard her older cousin rapping to 50 Cent’s I Get Money instrumental, and became fascinated with creating her own lyrics over beats. At the age of 18, she was performing at lounges and venues in Maryland and Washington D.C., such as The Filmore, Takoma Station, Pure Lounge, etc. In 2016, she released her first EP: Different Sides of Me, one of her singles, “Remember” was described as a “classic Hip-Hop feel” by MusicOnTheDot.